Strapping or banding machine



March 20, 1945. l J. T. COOPER 2,371,806

STRAPPING OR.BANDING MACHINE Filed oct. 4, 1945' 2 sheets-sheet 1 IllINVENTOR- IgQSeZ h? jf@oper l f2 Trae/Vey.

-:Patented Mar. 20, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE srnArnNG onnANnmdMAcma Joseph T. Cooper, Alhambra, Calif. Application october 4,194s, som1.No.`5o4,ss1

(c1. 10o-a1) 11 Claims.

My invention relates to a strapping or banding machine and has for anobject to provide means for automatically arranging a strap or bandaround a box, article, or group of boxes or group of articles.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a strapping orbanding machine that will utilize the weight of the box or articlebeingstrapped or banded, to aid in applying the strap or band around same.

A further object of the invention is to provide automatic means forplacing the strap or banl in position around a box or article, with theends arranged to be fastened together by a clip or other suitable means.

My invention also has for its objects to provide such a machine that ispositive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a workingposition and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture,relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novelcombinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear inthe course of the following description. However, the drawings merelyshow and the following description merely describes embodiments of thepresent invention, which are given by way of illustration or exampleonly.

In the drawings, like reference characters designate similar parts inthe several'views.

Fig. 1 is a plan view, partly in section, of a machine embodying theforegoing objects.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of said machine.

Fig. 3 is another elevational view of the machine, but in a differentoperative position, and with the legs broken away.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged face view of an operative element, partly inlongitudinal section, taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 5. l

Fig. 5 is a side elevation, looking in the direction of arrow A of Fig.4.

Fig. 6 is a still further enlarged fragment of the portion at the rightend of Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a section taken on the line 1-1 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 8 is a transverse section taken on the line 9-8 of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 6, but showing a modied constructiontherefor.

Fig. 10 is a broken section taken on the line Ill-I0 of Fig. 3.

Referring more in detail to the drawings, the reference number I2designates legs for supporting operative mechanism of the presentmachine. Braces I3 are applied to steady the legs.

Frame members Il and I5 are bolted together at I9. It will be noted thatthe members' I4 and 'l5 have laterally aligned series of openings I1,selected ones of which the bolts I9 pass througn. It is believed clearthat the bolts I9 may be removed and the legs I2A moved farther apartand the bolts I8 fastened in newly aligned openings in the arms I4 andI5, in order to enlarge the frame. Similar pairs of lower arms I8 and I9are adjustable in the same'manner. The arms Il, I5, I8 and I9 are boltedto the-legs I2, as shown at 20. The legs I2 have vertical series ofopenings 2I in order to raise and lower the arms I4 and I5.

Brackets 22 extend from the legs I2 to support motors 23. The motorshave V-shaped drive pulleys 24 keyed to their shafts. It is also to beunderstood thatany other suitable means may be employed to drive thearms 3|, including leverage, cam means, foot pressure means, etc.

Mounted upon the sides of the frame and spanning the space between thelegs I2 are shafts 25 at opposite ends of the machine. Tubular sleeves25 journal the shafts 25. The sleeves are bolted to the legs I2, asindicated at 21.

Mounted upon each sleeve 25 is a brack'et 29 for a headed pin 29, and acoil spring 39 that abuts against the head of the pin 29 and against theSupport 28, urging the pin 29 headwise against the side of the strap orband carrying arms 3l.

The arms 3I are beveled on their sides, which sldesconverge toward thebottom in the position shown in Fig. 2, and converge toward the top inthe position shown in Figs. 3 and 5. Each of the arms 3l is hollow, asshown in Fig. 4,' to house a spring 33. Oneend of the spring 33 abutsagainst a. bushing 34 on the shaft 25, and the other end of the springabuts against the head of an adjusting bolt 35. A bolted side plate 36is removable for access to the spring 33 and Aits adjusting means 35.

The arms 3l have suitable strap or band gripping means. Two differentforms of 'gripping means are shown in the drawings. In the -form shownin Figs. 6 to 8, a toothed wheel 35 A plate 4o is spaced opposite thetoothed A spring-urged wheel 38, to provide a space therebetween for alstrap or band 45. A ilange 4| on the plate 48 is'screwed to the side ofthe arm 3|.

In the form shown in Fig'. 9, a block 42 having a serrated face 43 iseccentrically mounted andurged by a spring 44 into engagement with thestrap 45 on the plate 40. It is to be understood that the word strap" inthis speciilcation and in the hereunto appended claims shall be taken toinclude both strapping and banding` material.

In the operation of my present machine, the arms 3| are arranged at thebeginning of the operation with their narrower sides downward.

. 40. In such case, a sumcient amount of the strap should be arranged tohang in a loop downward between the adjacent ends of the arms 3|, as

they are shown in Fig. 2, whereby the strap from one plate 40 to theother is almost the perimeter of the box.

It is of course to be understood that the frame forward and to tightenthe strap around the box.

The modiied construction in Fig. 9 operates similarly, since it gripsthe strapat the end that is being fed forward.

Each of the strap-gripping means permits easy manual release of thestrap after the arms 3| have passed beyond the motors '23.

As implied, when the arms 3| are moved to their said broken linepositions, in Fig. 3, the springs 33 are compressed. Thus, when the armsare disengaged from the strap 45 and the strapped box 41 is removed fromthe machine and the arms 3| manually disengaged from the motor drivenpulleys, the springs 33 move the arms 3| to positions in which thegreatest weight of the arms is on the ends 48. This greater weightcauses the ends 48 to swing down from the 'motors in the directions ofthe arrows B of Fig. 3.

members I4 and I5 are raised or lowered, yso that the top of the box orarticle to be strapped will be a little below the horizontal position ofthe arms 3|, when the box or article is resting on the members I4 andI5. Moreover, the legs I2 are adjusted closer together or farther apartwhen the box or article has a shorter or longer length. The adjusting isof course done by varying the overlap of the members I4 and I5 and I8and I9. The legs are preferably only slightly further apart, endwise,than the dimension of the box or article therebetween, as shown in Fig;3.

The spring-urged pins 29 bear against the sides of the arms 3|, tofrictionally hold same f in the starting position shown in Fig. 2. Thebox or article, suggested by the broken lines 41 in Figs.1and 2, isplaced upon the strap 45, causing the arms 3| to swing around theirshafts 25`in the directions of the arrows in Fig. 2.

The momentum of the arms 3| is suilicient to carry them around to thepositions shown in Fig. 3, in which positions the arms are held by thespring-urged pins 29 engaging the sides of the arms. During thisswinging movement of they arms, the ends of the strap are carried overon top of the box or article.

In order to automatically tighten the strap around the box or article41, the motors 23 drive the arms 3| toward each other, from their fullline positions to their broken line positions in Fig. 3. This movementis effected by the now upwardly converging wedge shape of the armsengaging the V-shape of the driving pulleys 24.

This movement of the arms 3| moves the ends of the strap 45 to positionsin which the ends may be fastened together in binding relation, by aclip 49 or by other suitable means.

It will be observed that the toothed wheels 36 rmly engage the strap 45so as substantially to prevent movement of the strap except by rotationof the wheels. When the arms 3| are being moved from their said fullline positions to their said broken line positions of Fig. 3, the pawls39 maintain the wheels 36 against retrograde movement (retrogrademovement would be clockwise progressively tightening band, thus drawingthe strap-gripping ends of the arms down toward the box, since the strap45 is a little below the arms 3l, thus tipping up the arm ends 48. Thusthe greatest friction occurs between the pulleys 24 and the arms 3| at atime when the greatest power is needed, which tends to prevent slippagebetween the pulleys and arms.

While I have illustrated and described what I now regard as thepreferred embodiments of my invention, the constructions are, of course,subject to modiiications without departing'from the spirit and scope ofmy invention. I, therefore, do not wish to restrict myself to theparticular forms of construction illustrated and described, but desireto avail myself of all modications that may fall within the scope of theappended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent is:

l. In a strapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mounted to swingtowards and away from each other about substantially parallel axes,means on the arms to grip strapping material, the arms being arrangedfor the Weight of the article being strapped to swing'the arms abouttheir axes, and mechanism arranged to move the arms longitudinallytowards each other, carrying gripped portions of the band towards eachother, for binding same together.

2. In a strapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mounted to swingtowards and away from each other about substantially parallel axes, thearms being constructed for a strap to be placed thereon in the startingpositions of the arms, means on the arms to grip strapping material, thearms being arranged for the article to be strapped to be yplaced on thestrap on the arms, and the arms being arranged for the weight of thearticle to swing the arms and the therewith gripped strapping materialaround the article, and motor means arranged to move the armslongitudinally towards each other, carrying gripped portions of the bandtowards each other, for binding same together.

3. In a strapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mounted to swingtowards and away from asvnsoe strapping material around an articlebeing` each other about substantially parallel axes, the arms beingconstructed for astrap to be placed thereon in the starting positions ofthe arms,

means on the arms to grip strapping material,

the arms being arranged for the article to be strapped to be placed onthe strap on the arms,

and the arms being arranged for the weight of the article to swing thearms and the therewith gripped strapping material around the article,motor means for driving the arms, and spring means tending to move thearms longitudinally towards the motor means when the strap is arrangedgenerally around the article, and the motor means being arranged todrive the arms longitudinally, against theA action of the spring means,carrying gripped portions of the band towards each other, for bindingsame together, the spring means returning the arms to their originalbalance with respect to their axes.

4. In a strapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mounted to swingtowards and away from each other about substantially parallel axes,pivoted means on the arms arranged to grip strapping material, and thearms being arranged for the weight of the article to swing the arms andthe therewith gripped strapping material around `each other aboutsubstantially parallel axes,

plates and therewith spaced,- rotary, toothed wheels arranged on thearms to engage strapping material, releasable ratchet and pawl meansconnected to prevent rotation of the wheels in one direction and permitrotation thereof in the op'-v posite direction, and the arms beingarranged for the weight of the article to swing the arms and thetherewith gripped strapping material around the article, and mechanismconnected to move the arms longitudinally towards each other, carryinggripped portions of the band towards each other, for binding sametogether.

6. In a strapping machine, opposed arms plv-ly otally mounted to swingtowards and away from each other about substantially parallel axes,resilient means tending to maintain the arms in a given position, thearms being constructedfor a strap to be placed thereon in said givenposi tion, means on the' arms to grip strapping material, the arms beingarranged for the article to be strapped tovbe placed on the strap onlthe arms, and the arms being arranged for the weight of the article toswing the arms and the therewith gripped strapping material around theartif4 cle. against the action of the resilient means, and mechanismarranged to move the arms towards A each other, carrying grippedportions of the band towards each other. for binding the same to- 7. Ina strapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mounted to swing aboutsubstantially parallel axes andmovable towards each other, means on thearms to grip strapping material, the'arms being mounted to pivotallycarry the gripped arms towards each other, carrying gripped portions ofthe* band towards each other, for binding same together.

8. In arstrapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mountedto swingabout'substantially parallel axes and movable towards each other, meanson the arms to grip 'strapping material, the arms being mounted topivotally carry the gripped strapping material around an article beingstrapped, the arms being wedge shaped, and driven, V-shaped pulleysmounted to frictionally'engage the wedge shape of the arms and to drivethe arms towards each other, carrying gripped portions of the bandtowards each other.

9. In a strapping machine, opposed arms pivotally mounted to swing aboutsubstantially parallel axes and slidable towards each other, means onthe arms arranged to grip strapping material when the arms are slid ingiven directions and arranged to release the material when the arms areslid in the opposite directions, the arms being mounted to pivotallycarry the gripped strapping material around an article being strapped.and mechanism arranged to slide the arms towards each other, the 1attermovement of the arms being in the directions in which the gripping meansgrips the material and carries gripped portions of the band towards eachother, the arms being slid in the opposite directions for the release ofthe gripping means.

10. In a strapping machine, a. framework, opposed arms pivotally mountedto swing on the framework about substantially parallel axes and movablelengthwise towards each other, the framework being constructed tosupport the arms at a short distance from a side of an article to bestrapped, means onthearms to grip strapping material, the arms beingmounted to pivotally carry the gripped strapping material around anarticle being strapped, and mechanism arranged to move the 'armslengthwise towards each other in a plane a short distance away from saidside of the article, the strapping material pivotally drawing the armscloser to the article as the strap tightens around the article, saidmechanism being arranged to increase its power to`drive the arms as thearms are drawn closer to the article.

11. In a strapping machine, a framework, opposed arms pivotally mountedto swing on the framework iabout substantially parallel axes and movablelengthwise towards each other, the

framework being constructed to support the arms at a sh rt distancel,from a side of an article to be str pped, means on theA arms to gripstrapping material, the arms being mounted to pivotally carry thegripped strapping material around an article being strapped, the armsbeing wedge shaped, and driven, V-shaped pulleys mounted to Irictionallyengage the wedge shape of the arms and to drive the arms lengthwisetowards each other in av plane a short distance away from the side ofthe article, the strapping material pivotally drawing the armsV closerto the article as the strap tightens around the article, thereby movingthe arms pivotally closer to the pulley, progressively increasing thefriction between the arms and the pulleys asthe arms are drawn closer tothe article.

JOSEPH T. COOPER.

